Once Upon a Dream
by Haine-chan
Summary: Lyra is cursed by the spiteful witch, Clair, during her coronation. She is destined to prick her finger on a nidoran and fall into an endless slumber, unless she is kissed by a true Champion. With the help of the Three Good Wizards, can Prince Lance prove his worth as a Pokémon Master in order to save the girl of his dreams? Parody of "Sleeping Beauty". (1/6 in Protag!Prin series).
1. Of Coronation of Curses

**A/N: So I've decided to start what I like to call the Protag!Prin series. Otherwise known as the Protagonist!Princess series, I am writing a collection of 5 stories centered on the female protagonists of the Pokémon games. There is more information on the upcoming stories and ideas surrounding this series on my profile, if you'd like to check it out. So, in explaining this idea to you, it is obvious that this is the first installment in the aforementioned series. Lyra is by far one of my favourite female characters (only losing slightly to Leaf). I wanted to start with her because I came up with the idea for her story first. If you couldn't tell from the summary, it is loosely based on the classic fairytale of "Sleeping Beauty". No, not the crazed up film starring Emily Browning. The classic. In writing this, I will be messing with the plotline due to the addition of Pokémon and will be dabbling in some genderbending as well. Also, I won't be taking parts of the story seriously, so expect comic relief. **

**All fun stuff indeed. I can't tell you how many chapters this will be, but I can only hope that each fic will be roughly the same length. I'd also like to know which princess story you'd like me to write next (or simultaneously with this one, dependant on my current projects' standings), so drop me a line in a review, if you want. Just make sure to check out my profile, where I've listed each protagonist and their respective fairytale.**

**Rant over! Enjoy the first chapter of Protag!Prin story number one, ****_Once Upon a Dream!_**

Chapter 1

Of Coronations and Curses

Lyra glanced at herself in the mirror of the dressing room, tugging on her bright pink dress excitedly. Her eyes blinked back at her in the reflective glass as she tilted her head slightly, surprised to see how well she looked in such splendorous garb. Swathed in rich pink fabric, the dress she wore was cinched at her waist and ballooned at her waist. Her brown hair was pulled up into spiraling pigtails and cascaded down to her shoulders in tight ringlets. She smiled at the image of herself, fully taking in all of the little details that culminated in her appearance.

It was only yesterday, Lyra remembered, that she was wearing her favourite marshmallow hat and worn overalls, trekking towards the final Gym Castle, eager to challenge the last Regent of the Realm. Her last challenger, Sir Pryce, specialized in Ice-type Pokemon, and he had been a great challenge to her. Training endlessly beforehand though, Lyra battled against him and won with grace and power. After her victory, the man congratulated her, conferred onto her his respective badge and told her this phrase: "The battleground is your castle, your Pokémon your court, and you are the queen." She knew not how to react to such a statement, only blushing and bowing her head respectfully.

Now she stood in the dressing room of the King's Castle, looking like true royalty, anxious about her coronation as the new reigning Princess of the Realm.

A soft knock on the door made the young girl's head turn. She turned her head and said, "Come in."

The door opened to reveal a young pageboy in uniform. "Miss Lyra, your coronation is about to start,"

She sucked in a breath and took one last look at herself before stepping off of the pedestal she was on and walking towards the boy. She smiled at him and followed him down many twisting corridors and hallways until they eventually reached the throne room. The castle was lavish enough, but the throne room was beyond belief. Tapestries emblazoned with the current king's emblem were draped on the walls. Nobility from every corner of the region were gathered in the hall to witness her coronation. She felt the butterflies in her stomach flutter relentlessly.

"May I present, Miss Lyra!" the young boy shouted. Everyone's gaze slowly turned to watch her as she began to walk down the very long carpet to the throne. The king and his queen were watching her with pleasant eyes, eager to meet their new regent. Lyra's gaze wandered and to the floor, not wanting to meet the eyes of royalty just yet.

Lyra stopped just in front of the thrones and she curtsied, making sure she didn't trip on the copious amounts of fabric that cascaded around her.

"Your Majesties," she said. "I have triumphed over the Regents of the Realm and have proven myself through my skills and my Pokémon. I am honoured to be in your presence."

The king smiled warmly at her. "Lyra of New Bark Town. You have shown us that you are more than capable of defeating any enemy that stands in your way. As such, you have thoroughly earned your title as our new Princess of the Realm."

The crowd cheered loudly as they shouted, "All hail Princess Lyra!"

She couldn't help but blush as the king smiled at her warmly. "And now, we begin the ceremony."

He motioned towards the pageboy who had escorted her to the coronation and he nodded his head. "Now may I introduce, The Three Good Wizards: Sir Gold, Sir Silver and Sir Khoury!"

Three young men descended from a shaft of light in the ceiling and slowly began falling towards the crowd. There was a red-headed boy, who crossed his arms in frustration; a dark-haired boy with a playful grin on his face; and a green-haired boy who surveyed the area.

"Why are we playing the fairies?" Silver complained as they landed on the floor elegantly.

"Technically speaking, we're wizards, not fairies." Khoury said, pushing up his glasses.

"At least we're not wearing degrading outfits or anything," added Gold, noticing that he was wearing a dark, flowing robe with gold trim. Silver and Khoury wore identical robes, only theirs were trimmed with red and green, respectively.

"Seriously, the author had enough female characters to work with," Silver continued.

"Get over yourself man," Gold said. "Besides, we get magic powers!"

"And now the wizards will bestow gifts upon the new princess!" the page proclaimed.

Silver rolled his eyes. "Let's get this over with,"

"You could be a little more optimistic about this, you know," Khoury chastised as they half-floated half-walked towards Lyra.

Each man pulled out a pokeball, enchanted with their magic and held it in front of Lyra.

Silver stepped forward first. "Noble princess, I give you the gift of strength." He released the pokeball and a bright red light burst forth from the sphere, enveloping Lyra with its wondrous glow. She looked down to her waist, where she kept the pokeballs containing her own Pokémon. They too glowed with light and she could feel both of them becoming imbued with not only physical but mental strength as well. She smiled at him and curtsied as he resumed his place beside his fellow wizards.

Gold then took a step forward and grinned. "Beautiful princess, I give you the gift of wisdom." From his pokeball came a warm yellow light that floated towards her and covered her in its glow. She could feel her mind become sharper as she noticed her Pokémon looking up at her through their spheres with knowing eyes. Lyra smiled again and curtsied once more as Gold took his place again.

"Suck-up," Silver whispered harshly.

"You're just jealous 'cause you didn't think of it first," Gold retorted.

It was Khoury's turn to bestow his gift and he hesitantly walked up to Lyra, eyes glued to the floor. "G-gracious princess, I give you the gift of—"

All of a sudden, before Khoury could bestow his gift, the doors to the throne room burst open and a heavy gust of wind came hurtling into the room. Everyone gasped in shock as they witnessed a sinister blue smoke arise from the entryway. From within the smoke came the figure of a woman, who sneered at the on-looking crowd. She emerged from the smoke after coughing at the fumes a bit. She was adorned in a very detailed outfit that seemed akin to a dragon tamer and a flowing black cape that billowed behind her.

"Oh I see how it is," she said with malice as she scanned the room. "Everyone else in the entire region is invited to witness the coronation but I was left off the guest list!" She noticed a rather sketchy looking man in the crowd, who was picking dirt out from underneath his fingernails. "You even invited the hermit? That's ridiculous! Is this really the way you treat your most powerful Regent?"

"Most powerful? Ha!" laughed one of the advisers to the king. "You do not deserve such an honour! Haven't you forgotten that you lost your position due to your vanity and pride?"

Her cold gaze became fixated on the old man and she grunted in anger. "Vanity and pride? That's a fault all of you people have! I should purge the king's court of all its sins while I'm here!" From her waist she pulled out a long whip, which glowed a sinister blue colour. She pulled back her arm and aimed the whip directly at the adviser.

"Clair!" yelled a voice. Everyone turned to see the king, who had intercepted the whip and whose arm was now coiled in its grip.

"Your Majesty!" the adviser said worriedly as he noticed dark blood oozing from his arm.

"You did not come here to harass the citizens of my land, Clair." he said, eyes blazing. "Tell us of your real motive behind your appearance here."

"You're right," Clair agreed, releasing the king from the whip's strong grip. He fell to the ground, cradling his injured arm to his chest. "There was a much different objective to my arrival." Lyra could see her steely blue eyes reach hers as the woman smiled at her cruelly. "So this is the new princess, eh?" She walked towards her slowly, scanning her up and down. "You've got to be kidding me. This pipsqueak is the future queen? She doesn't even look like she's hit puberty yet!"

"_You_ haven't matured nearly as much as Lyra has!" scoffed Gold. His fellow wizards shot him wary gazes.

Clair turned her attention to the boy and laughed. "Haven't matured yet, have I?" She returned her gaze to Lyra. "If you can receive gifts from the Three Stooges over here, then I too shall give you a gift!" The whole crowd gasped as she smiled. "Listen well, you fools! You may have strength and wisdom and all that jazz, but it means nothing if you're not alive to use it!" She cracked her whip menacingly. "Before the eve of your twentieth birthday, you will prick your finger on a nidoran…_and die_!"

"No!" yelled the citizens.

"Oh, but here's the best part. Your death won't be instant. Your body will remain as it is now, semi-beautiful and half-developed. But your mind will slowly be eaten away through your dreams. Nothing will be able to wake you from your nightmares! Ha ha ha ha!" She laughed at her own trickery as the citizens of the land mumbled to each other in anger and frustration.

"That's enough, Clair!" said the King. He was now being held up by his adviser and readying a golden pokeball in his palm. "Or do I have to put you in your place?"

"Fine," she said, seemingly through with torturing the court. As she turned to leave, though, she stopped mid-turn and stared at Lyra. "But heed my words carefully, little princess. Your life on earth will end in a matter of years and when it does your title and your power will be mine!" She cackled menacingly and disappeared within the same blue smoke that she arrived in.

The crowd began to settle down, slowly taking in the words the witch had prophesized.

"I am...going to…die?" Lyra whispered to herself as she buried her face in her hands, tears forming in her eyes.

"Not on our watch, you won't!" proclaimed Khoury as he ran up to the princess. He placed a hand on her shoulder and she looked up, surprised. "I still haven't given you my gift yet." He smiled. Pulling out his pokeball, he closed his eyes. "Gracious princess, even though the witch Clair has foretold your fate, she has not written it in stone. Death shall not claim you when you prick your finger. It shall only be sleep. You will awaken the day a true Champion proves his worth and kisses your fair lips." Just before he released his pokeball, he quickly muttered under his lips, "And you'll forget all this stuff that just happened too." With that, he unleashed his green light, which circled around the young girl.

Lyra could feel herself becoming extremely tired, like she needed to take a nap. Her eyes began to shut and she fell unconscious. Anticipating such an action, Khoury extended his arms outwards and caught her mid-air. He glanced at her sleeping form and smiled, proud of his handiwork.

"Why'd you knock her out?" asked Silver.

"Well how else was she supposed to forget everything she just saw?" Khoury protested.

"Now what are we gonna do?" said Gold.

"Lyra must be taken far from this region, away from Clair's careful watch," proclaimed the king, who was now seated at his throne. "You three will be her guardians, watching over her and ensuring that she is kept hidden. She will be trained in the art of Pokémon battles under your expertise so that she is able to defend herself against Clair. I fear that even with her potential and the gifts you have bestowed upon her, she will not be able to match such a powerful enemy."

"But what of your court, good king?" asked the queen. "We will have no successor!"

"On the day of her birthday, she will return to the castle and under our protection, she will marry our son, Prince Lance."

"An arranged marriage?" asked Gold. "Don't you think that's a bit archaic?"

"It must be done," said the king. "It is law."

Khoury scanned the room quickly. "By the way, where is the prince?"

"Away for training," whispered Gold as they returned their attention to the front of the room.

The king closed his eyes and sighed. "I can only hope that she will be safe from Clair's sorcery. She has been causing trouble within my kingdom for decades and yet she has never attempted something so vile. Why could that be?"

"Maybe because she's a bitter old hag who can't get over her obvious character flaws?" said Silver matter-of-factly.

"We may never know, but what I do know is that we have a chance at saving her." He snapped his fingers and two attendants rushed to his side. "Summon a carriage for the wizards and the princess and take them to the deepest part of the Ilex Forest. Ensure they arrive there safely." The two bowed and left. "Good luck, wizards. The fate of the kingdom rests on your wise shoulders,"

As the three men turned to leave, with the unconscious Lyra in Khory's arms, Gold furrowred his brows and looked his fellow sorcerors in the eye. "How are we gonna explain all this to her once she wakes up?"


	2. An Unexpected Encounter

Chapter 2

An Unexpected Encounter

The Three Good Wizards successfully whisked the unconscious Princess Lyra in the king's royal carriage to a small cottage deep in the middle of the Ilex Forest. They hadn't been followed by any of Clair's lackeys on the way and the path through the forest had been relatively smooth. Of course, it was a bit of a hassle figuring out exactly what story to tell her concerning her sudden appearance in the thick of an ancient wood with three strangers. After much deliberation and some angry comments, Gold had thought up a wonderfully short but explanatory tale that would effectively fill Lyra in on why she was with them and also keep her curiosity from peaking too much.

He would tell her that they were three trainers who guarded the sacred Ilex Shrine. They had found her in the forest, lying unconscious with her Pokémon huddled around her worriedly. Not knowing if she was being chased by something or had been attacked, the three had quickly rushed to her aid, bringing her to their cottage, where she now was.

For the most part, she believed it, stating that she was planning on travelling to the forest to train her Pokémon in order to grow stronger. She smiled at their hospitality and decided to live with them in order to maintain the peace and tranquility of the Ilex Forest. The trio couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief at her acceptance of their last-minute plans. Khoury had feared he would need to wipe her memory again if she proved temperamental.

Now four years had passed with Lyra living under the wizard's care and not a single evil thing had occurred. Every now and then, there would be a rampant Pokémon attack or the odd thief attempting to steal the treasure of the shrine, but that was to be expected. Lyra, as per the king's instructions, was taught to battle with grace and beauty. Unfortunately for the men, she proved exceedingly powerful and had won many a time. Against Khoury, she always won; with Gold it was a tossup and with Silver, it was rare when she did.

What happened to Lyra's title, you ask? That secret still has to be kept under lock and key. Lyra herself is still blissfully unaware of her place as Princess of the Realm. The king reigns without her and his health slowly declines. The queen grows ever doubtful of the protection Lyra is under and frequently sends farfetch'd mail carriers to receive updates on her status. It is a real hassle for the wizards, however, to prevent the forgetful princess from reading said letters. They have devised a way to disguise the bird, however, by stating that it is a messenger from the temple in Ecruteak City, who routinely asks about the Ilex Shrine's wellbeing. Lyra believes their tale, although now that she is growing older, her wisdom is beginning to show, manifesting itself as a curious spark in her eyes. Regardless, she always takes the time to give the beloved farfetch'd a snack before it flies back home.

Oh, what's that? You want to know about the Crown Prince, too? Shortly after Lyra was spirited away by the Three Good Wizards, Lance retuned to the castle only to learn that he was now betrothed to a complete stranger. Being accustomed to his freedom, he was, as most of us would be, certainly taken aback by such a turn of events. But he was not called a just man for nothing. He solemnly accepted his fate and, knowing only one way to cope with his emotions, fled again to the outskirts of the region to train. If he was going to have to give up his freedom within a matter of years, he was going to make sure that his Pokémon were at their best. Having chosen not to inform him of Lyra's curse or the fact that she was his intended, the king begrudgingly watched his only son vanish into the air, riding his grandfather's dragonite with ease. As you could have imagined, Lance is in the dark about Clair's arrival at the coronation and of the cruel twist of fate that awaits Lyra. If only he knew that the girl he was to be married to wasn't as she seemed to be…

We must return to the present events. Lyra is approaching the eve of her twentieth birthday with excitement and the Three Good Wizards are experiencing a difficult time deciding how to celebrate both her birthday and the day of her ill-fated curse.

Lyra was standing outside of the cottage, a pokeball in hand and a huge grin spread across her face. "Are you ready to lose?"

Khoury hesitantly picked up a pokeball of his own and cringed, knowing full well that he was going to get annihilated in battle for the umpteenth time. "C'mon, Lyra, you know beating me doesn't give you any satisfaction. And besides, my Pokémon need a break,"

She blinked at him and made her signature pouty face. "But your Pokémon look so happy when we battle…" She knew that he couldn't resist her.

The wizard sighed and said, "Fine, one battle but that's—"

"Alright, come on out meganium and use take down!" she called out as she quickly threw her pokeball to the ground and released the pokemon.

"Hey, I haven't even let mine out yet!" Khoury yelled anxiously as he dropped his pokeball containing his gible. Before he could even call out an attack, the huge meganium was already slamming it to the ground. He knew it couldn't take another hit like that. "Use dig!"

Within seconds, the tiny dragon was digging its way towards the meganium, who was staring at the ground, confused. Lyra, however, didn't seem as agitated as her pokemon, as she seemed to be tracking the gible's movements underground. Khoury began to sweat, knowing that Lyra was most likely thinking of a strategy.

"Aha!" she yelled, pointing to where the gible was. Khoury yelled in frustration as her meganium slammed its head into the ground, causing his gible to pop up. It staggered on its tiny feet, confusedby the blow to its forehead. He knew that she would take this opportunity to strike. "Now use razor leaf!" A shower of leaves pummeled into the dragon and it fell to the ground with a thud, now unable to battle.

"You are indeed strong, Lyra," Khoury said as he wiped his forehead of the sweat it had accumulated during the two minute battle. He returned his unconscious Pokémon to its ball and sighed. "But I still don't understand why you need to pummel me into the ground to prove that."

Lyra patted her meganium on the head and smiled. "Oh come on, Khoury. I battle you for practice!" She returned the Pokémon and began to walk away, seemingly bored with the curly haired man.

Khoury, not wanting to wallow in the sorrow of yet another defeat, caught up to her and said, "You know what would be more beneficial to your training? Going out into the woods and battling some wild Pokémon." The girl's brown eyes lit up at the suggestion. "That way, you won't be able to anticipate what they'll do next." His eyes lowered as he added, "And it would probably be more fun than beating me for the fifth time this week."

She smiled and winked saying, "That sounds awesome! And don't worry; I'll give you a five minute breather."

With that, the brunette skipped off into the forest, humming a very cheery tune as she went. As Khoury slumped against a tree trunk, he was joined by his fellow wizards. Silver stood to his right, arms folded over his chest. Gold stood to his right, with his arms behind his head.

"So you're sending a nineteen year old girl into a dense forest by herself on the day before she's fated to prick her finger on a tiny rodent and sleep for the rest of her life." Silver said. "Nice going,"

"Lighten up," Gold said. "She's perfectly capable of handling herself."

The red head focused his gaze on the fading silhouette of their princess. "That's what I'm afraid of."

xxXXxx

Lyra had found her way to a peaceful spring a few miles away from her cottage and was enjoying the solitude that came with travelling alone. It was rare when she was allowed to wander on her own—Khoury always let her; Gold was every other day and Silver never allowed it. She always wondered how such polar opposites could live in such cramped quarters. But they had an important job to do and she figured that they put aside their differences in order to protect what mattered most.

She sat down on a mossy rock and dipped her foot in the cool water of the spring. Instead of training, she had decided to take a break. Sighing, she turned to her meganium, which was taking a seat next to her on the grass and chewing stray bits of leaves that had fallen from the trees. "Meganium, you think I'm strong right?"

The creature happily nodded its head and nuzzled itself under she arm. She smiled and petted it affectionately.

"It just seems like there's a lot more to life than battles and training. But how am I supposed to figure out if that's true or not when I live in a forest?" She looked down to the water and furrowed her brows. "This can't be the only spring in the world." She turned her attention to the towering trees that surrounded her. "And this can't be the only wood in the world." Placing her head in her hands she sighed once again. "I've gotta find out, meganium. I just have to."

All of a sudden, she heard a sound from behind her. Her head whipped around to see what the cause was, but there was nothing there. Cocking her head to one side, she ignored it and continued to stare at the water. Soon, though, it became apparent that there was something nearing her, as the sound became louder and louder. She looked at her meganium, which was now standing up and gazing into the distance. Lyra turned her gaze as well, hopping off of her rock and preparing to battle whatever wild Pokémon came her way.

Who would have known that she could find something so handsome in the middle of a forest?

**A/N: Eek! I'm sorry it took so long. It's been busy. Although I've been able to regularly update ****_Venom _****for a while now. Anywho, big thanks to BluePepsiCola for being the first follower and reviewer! I greatly appreciate your interest in this story. It was a big contender in my decision to continue this story. Also, thanks to Casamora for enjoying it as well (and inspiring a new story in the process)!**


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